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When did Samuel Clemens earn his riverboat pilotâs license?
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Mark Twain
American humorist and novelist Mark Twain, c. 1907.
Samuel Clemens, who later became famous as the writer Mark Twain, earned his riverboat pilotâs license in 1859.1
After beginning his apprenticeship in 1857 under the instruction of captain Horace Bixby, Clemens mastered the navigation of the Mississippi River and subsequently joined the Western Boatmanâs Benevolent Association shortly after receiving his license.1